Kibble and whole food amount questions

[jadecrusader]

How many ounces should a grown ferret eat a day of whole foods?

What is the best kibble brand (so I can feed as a supplement)?

What is the cheapest place to get the best kibble brand?

I'm thinking about raising some ASF rats and also feeding some raw chicken in between and then kibble in their cage at all times for snacking, and I'm trying to work out pricing for food, so any advice would be greatly appreciated

[Sherry]

It's been such a long time since I've even HAD kibble in the house! But Wysong's Epigen 90 is the best one on the market. I think you have to order it online, but not sure. Any particular reason you want to keep kibble in his diet?
Here's a reference to amounts, but this is ONLY raw, no kibble included:
holisticferret60.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=questions&action=display&thread=85

[jadecrusader]

Just thinking about cost and shelf life, but the more I'm reading it seems that whole food is cheaper anyway and better for them. Guess I'm still learning . I thought it was good to always have kibble in their cage as well as regular meals so they never went hungry because their metabolism is so high, but I'm probably wrong, lol.

<cut down my multiple posts and appended them here>

Also, I already grow mealworms for my geckos. Those are a snack option, right?

Sorry for the multiple posts, but I have another question. Since I must feed between 2-4 ounces of food a day, would I be fine feeding them 2-4 xl mice a day? Is it important to their health to have a variety of different foods, or as long as they get the necessary ingredients (skin, meat, organs, bones), they'll be fine? I'm looking into ordering some frozen xl mice (they are just over an ounce of food each). I think the cheapest/easiest solution for me would be to order the frozen mice and then supplement with young ASF rats as we have them, but I see tons of people also feeding their ferrets beef and chicken, etc. Is this just because it's easy or does the ferret NEED this variety?

[Deleted]

They can occasionally snack on mealworms. They need as much varitey as posible the more the better but at the very least 3 different protein sources. So they can't live on mice and rats alone. Ferrets fed whole prey/raw only eat 2x day because they are getting the correct nutrients and they utilize it better which is why they eat so many times a day with kibble.

Sent from my SCH-M828C using ProBoards

[Sherry]

Agreed Jessica If a ferret were to eat nothing BUT whole prey, they are fine with say, mice, rats, guinea pig. But since no studies have been done to know the precise nutrients needed for ferrets, we try to err on the side of caution with the raw. So yes, we feed such a variety to make sure all nutritional bases are covered.

[lumene]

I would like to add a little note of information.
Kibble should also be kept in the fridge If you decide to buy some, you wouldn't believe the amount of bacteria that accumulates in a cupboard.

Link for cats, but same rules apply www.catinfo.org

[jadecrusader]

Awesome info. Okay, so if I decided to feed whole prey would frozen/thawed mice, guinea pigs, and chicks work? Or would it have to be something more rodent based (like mice, rats, guinea pigs only)?

So what about mice, guinea pigs, chicks, the occasional ASF weanling (like once every two weeks), and mealworms as snacks? Would that be sufficient? It seems like something I can work with.

Also, Lumene, thanks for the link! I never knew that; interesting info.

[lumene]

Chicks should be fine.

No problemo! Its the website that really opened my eyes after my cat suffered a blockage eating kibble, got me on raw in the first place.

[Sherry]

Just keep in mind- the young if any prey isn't that nutritious. And almost no calcium, which ferrets have a high need for. Consider chicks and pinkies to be candy.

[Deleted]

Chicks should only be a one per ferret a week thing. You could add in rabbit or quail.

Sent from my SCH-M828C using ProBoards

[Sherry]

I'd say a meal once a week would be good, instead of just one chick in a week. If I tried just giving one, I think I'd loose a hand ;D
Unfortunately, I can't get hold of chicks anymore

[Deleted]

All you senior members, thank you for teaching us about soupies. It so helped me out today.

[Sherry]

It does work- i've used it for sick cats as well.

[jadecrusader]

Thanks for the info! I've been reading a lot and I think I have a plan (but also another two questions):

Okay, so ferrets get their taurine from the hearts in their whole prey, right? So I wouldn't have to supplement any other type of organ meats in their diet if I was feeding strictly whole prey? And then twice a year (when they change coats) I would feed pumpkin?

So to sum up my plan, I would feed approximately 3 ounces total a day of a mix of large mice, medium rats, and medium guinea pigs, and I can mix it up by throwing some chicks and the occasional fresh ASF rat in there for a variety, then mealworms for snacks, then twice a year feed pumpkin, and daily they can have a bite of unsalted butter to keep their fat intake up. Does this sound adequate?

[Sherry]

What you have mentioned is more than adequate. And either unsalted butter or lard, either/or. Here's a good read for you on the natural diet for wild European polecats:
holisticferret60.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=mice&action=display&thread=1366